HYSSOP
Hyssopus Officinalis L.
This article was translated by Angela Iancu!
Isop; Fr.: Hysope; G.: Ysop; M.: Izsop; R.: Issop lekarstvennîi.
Identification elements: the plant: cultivated, herbaceous species that grows and produces for 10-15 years, bush like aspect, lignified at the base, 20-60 (80) cm high; subterranean part: short brown rhizome from which springs vertical roots; aerial stem: the rhizome gives birth to several branched stems, lignified in the lower part, cylindrical, and herbaceous in the upper part with four angles; leaves: opposed, lanceolate- linear, 2-4 cm long and 2-8 mm wide, almost sessile, without hairs, shiny with the margin entire; flowers: grouped in spike inflorescences on one side, formed out of 7-9 flowers, borne at the axile of upper leaves, the calyx is like a tube, corolla is bilabial, violet (rarely pink or white), with both lips very turned-down and deeply fragmented, the superior one much shorter; the characteristic different from other labiates is the way the 4 erect stamina (2 of them longer) together with the style and stigmata stick out a lot out of the corolla; fruits: smooth, angled nucula, 2-2,5 mm long and half wide, grouped in 4.
Flowering: VII – IX.
Raw material: Herba Hyssopi – formed from unlignified stems with green branches, small long leaves, 2-4 cm long and 2-8 mm wide, with a very short petiole, glabrous, shiny with the margin entire; flowers arranged in bouquets at the axile of upper leaves, colored in purple, pink or white-pink. Aromatic odor, the flavor is aromatic, slightly-burning.
Ecology and distribution: It is a light loving plant with higher demands towards the heat and at higher temperatures the quantity of volatile oil is larger. During winter, it can endure harsh temperatures of -25˚…-30˚C if the soil is covered. It is not demanding towards humidity and from the second year of culture it can tolerate periods of drought.
It grows well on limestone soils but in general it can be cultivated on any kind of soil so that it can be used in anti-erosion works, in steep places, in fixing the moving sands, in slope works, in hedgerows, anywhere other cultures don’t grow and because of her decorative appearance it can find a place in parks and public places.
Cultivation technology: The multiplication can be done vegetatively (by stools or by dividing the bush) and through seeds, early on in the spring or right before winter. Both the stools and the seeds are planted in deep furrow of 28-30 cm. In the spring, the land is harrowed to destroy the boulders and after that the seeding and the planting can take place.
If the foregoing plants were not enriched, chemical fertilizers are used, as the soil requires, ranging between 55-60 kg/ha of nitrogen, 10-15 kg/ha of potassium and 50 kg of phosphor. The phosphor is distributed in the deep summer or autumn furrow, together with the conditioning of the land.
The seeding is done by a machine, in rows, at a distance of 50-60 cm and 2 cm deep. To obtain this depth, the weights from the tubes are removed.
For one hectare are used 4 kg of seeds (with 95% purity, 75% germination and 13% maximum humidity) mixed with garden soil or sand (one part seeds and 5 parts of one of this materials).
If during the seeding the soil is aerated and dry it is necessary that both before and after the seeding a light pressing of the land is performed with the roller.
As soon as the rows are distinguished, the first hoeing is done to destroy the crust and weeds. The cover with earth of the plants should be avoided. At the second hoeing it is done the thinning of the plants. Between plants it is left a distance of 20-25 cm. In the first year and the following, the hoeing is performed whenever necessary to keep the land clean of weeds and without crust. In order to stimulate the flowering production it is recommended that in spring, before vegetation, the bushes are cropped.
The production is estimated with 4-5 days before harvesting. From the surface of a hectare are chosen 10-15 m from different places and the raw material is harvested and weight. The average per m² is calculated and then referred to one hectare. Let’s suppose that from 15 m² were harvested 17,5 kg of raw material. The average is: 17,5/15= 1,16 kg/m². Related to one hectare: 1,16x10000= 11600 kg/ha of green raw material or 11600 kg : 4 kg = 2900 kg of dry raw material, the drying report being of 4:1.
From the hyssop are collected the flowers without the wooden parts of the stem. The harvesting is done between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m., on dry weather, with the sickle or the simple mowing when the plants have half flowered.
The annual harvest per hectare ranges from 10000 – 15000 kg of green raw material or 2500 – 3750 kg of dry raw material.
In order to collect the seeds, the hyssop is harvested when these start to blacken. The plants cut are tied in small piles and left to dry for 3-4 days and after that they are threshed. One hectare can produce 500-700 kg. The seed can germinate for 3-5 years. The weight of a 1000 seeds is around 0.9849 g and one gram contains an average of 1015 seeds. The germinal energy is for 3 days and the germinating ability for 8 days.
Disease, pests and means of control: The hyssop is attacked by the dodder. As a prevention measure, it should be avoided the planting of hyssop on fields infested with dodder. The spots of dodder appeared in the culture will be destroyed by fire.
Until the present moment, in our country there are no cases of hyssop attacked by pests.
Preparing the product for conditioning: After removing the lignified stems, the hyssop is put to dry in the shade, in well aired rooms, in thin layers; the artificial drying is done at 30-35˚C. The drying efficiency is of 4/1.
The technical conditions for reception require that the raw material is formed of un-lignified stems, harvested during flowering, with a maximal 3% impurity (lignified stems, brownish plants), foreign organic and mineral bodies – max. 0.5% each, humidity – max. 12%.
For the fresh product, the conditions are the same as for the peppermint.
Chemical structure: the aerial parts of the plant harvested during flowering contain 0.5 – 1% volatile oil, formed especially out of pinene and pinocamphone (around 50%), sesquiterpene, a bitter substance of a lactonic nature – marubiin, ursolic and oleanolic acids, 3-sitosterin, tannin, diosmin, hisopin, sugars, mineral salts etc.
Pharmacodynamic action – therapeutic uses: Thanks to the components of the volatile oil, the diosmin and the hisopin, it has an expectorant and antiseptic action; the marubiin and tannins have a bitter-tonic and slightly astringent action. It is used in affections related to the respiratory system, especially in chronic bronchitis and bronchi asthma. It is rarely used for cicatrizing effects.
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